This is the second part about my recent adventures playing golf and hanging out in France for two weeks earlier this month. For part 1 of this series, go here — which is, of course, highly recommended! Like what you see? Check out and follow on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Snapchat…what am I missing?

(Photo by Patrick Koenig)

After the quick jaunt in Normandy, we arrived in Paris. Oui! Who doesn’t love Paris? Oui! I mean, no! I’ve been a couple of times, but I don’t think I’d been in almost a decade, so it was definitely long overdue, not to mention it was my golfing buddy-in-crime Patrick Koenig’s first trip. Though we only had one (and a half) free evening(s), and I made the most of it and hit up a couple of the main tourist spots, where we dressed like cat burglars and performed impressive stretch routines and high-kicked our way throughout the city.

We traveled from Normandy to the Paris area to experience Golf de Saint-Cloud, where we battled the elements (again) — sleet, rain, sun, hail, snow, wind, etc. — with nine holes (plus three-five more). There are two 18-hole tracks, the Green Course, designed by some architect named Harry Colt, and the Yellow Course.

This is part 3 from golf party (#partiedegolf !!) in France for two weeks in December 2017. For part 1 and 2 of this series, go hereand here — which are, of course, highly recommended!Like what you see? Check out and follow on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Snapchat, etc.

With the Ryder Cup headed to France in 2018, it seemed not only logical but practical to conduct a reconnaissance trip to play some of the country’s finest golf courses before the year end.

A couple of months ago, when I was contacted by Olivier from Private Golf Key, a Paris-based travel, golf and lifestyle company, about the potential journey to Normandy and Paris, along with Cannes, the host city for the 2017 International Golf Travel Market (it’s like the PGA Show, but for golf tourism), I felt like it would be a disservice to turn down such an opportunity, especially since interest will be piqued with Le Golf National hosting the always much-anticipated biennial matches between the premier golfers in Europe and the U.S.

Surely everyone’s immediate reaction was similar and you were like, that’s such an awesome hat; I want one. So you added it to your Christmas wish list and you’re betting it’ll show up in your stocking, but there’s a chance that Santa decides you don’t deserve it or forgets it. Which would really suck. Alas, great news! — we’re having a giveaway for Rickie’s go-to hat for the upcoming season, and you don’t just have one chance to win, but THREE!

I’m fairly certain that headline makes zero sense, and what’s worse, it is so basic that it makes me want to seethe in a bath of self-loathing sewer water. Okay, I can’t believe I just typed those words together because I am physically cringing and cowering at the thought. But in this rare occasion, I don’t care if the headline is dumb and trite because I like it.

What a week! Rickie Fowler went absolutely nuts in the final round at Albany Golf Club, kicking off the day with seven straight birdies and posting an eight-under 28 on the front nine. Fowler cooled off a bit on the back nine, but still fired an 11-under 61, setting a new course record, tournament record, and his personal career-low score. Rickie ran away with the victory by four shots.

Tiger Woods got off to a rough start in Saturday’s third round of the Hero World Challenge, posting a four-over 40 on the front nine, but he finished strong, playing the last five holes at two-under to shoot three-over 75.

EVERYONE TAKE A DEEP BREATH — it’s going to be OK! Tiger was bound to have an “off” day; almost every player, including the eventual winner, has one round over four days that feels more like a grind. The difference is usually how the player manages to contain the damage. And the conditions were tougher, with the wind up from the previous days. In fact, the scoring average of the field was three shots higher.

Even Tiger Woods thinks punters need to chill out with their bets for him to win the 2018 Masters. Before Woods teed off at the 18-player, no-cut Hero World Challenge on Thursday, the odds for the 14-time major champion were set at 50-1 to win at Augusta National. By the time he rounded the front nine on Friday with an impressive five-under 31 at Albany in the second round, the odds for Woods to win the Masters had gone to 15-1.

No doubt Woods impressed once again in just his second competitive round in over 300 days after another long layoff due to injury. He eclipsed his performance from Thursday, posting a solid four-under 68 for a 36-hole total of seven-under. Asked to describe the day in one word, a smiling Woods said, “Successful.”

As he played the par-4 18th, there was a double rainbow looming over the hole at Albany Golf Club in the Bahamas. It felt like a good omen. And it was — Woods holed a seven-footer to save par and posted a three-under 69 to kick off his latest comeback.

Hello from the Albany in the Bahamas! It’s partly sunny, mostly cloudy and rather breezy, but it’s still around 80 degrees. It’s only been “cold” in NYC for a couple of weeks or maybe a month, and I’ll probably regret saying this, but the humidity actually felt nice.

It’s been a rather quiet day at the Hero World Challenge — there were around a handful of guys practicing, but the big event took place mid-morning when tournament host Tiger Woods held his press conference. (I’m not 100% certain, but I’m pretty sure the last time he had an official (solo) presser was in February ahead of the Dubai Desert Classic, and that unfortunately didn’t turn out well (which was IMHO predictable).

The biggest takeaway: Tiger Woods seems genuinely really happy. He was gregarious, all smiles and only once did he give a one-word answer. The past seven years for Tiger has been a rollercoaster and I’ve definitely seen the good, the bad and the ugly, but I don’t recall the last time he was this affable and open. He gave lengthy, thoughtful and honest (as far as I could tell) answers and sometimes even went beyond the scope of the original question.

I caught up with legendary looper Kip Henley on Monday afternoon who was still on cloud nine after the RSM Classic at Sea Island. Kip had been bouncing around the past three years because his former boss Brian Gay had been injured and he was recommended to Cook by a mutual friend. They started working together for the Web.com Tour Finals.

Kip reflects on the past few months and talks about Austin’s game and personality, along with their player-caddie relationship. And of course, he also shares insights on how impressed he is with Austin’s composure and maturity. I mean, this kid sounds like an all-around solid individual, not to mention really solid golfer.